The ceremony was done—we were married! As our guests filed out and ran toward the beer, Benjamin and I swung around and headed back up to the altar for our formal family photos. We were short on time at this point as there was a mass in half an hour, so we powered through the various permutations of family and party.

As I’m nearing the end of my time here on the ‘Bee, I can’t help but get a little sentimental and sad that our wedding day is over. Sheesh, Eel, it has only been six months since your wedding. Major eye roll.

While our wedding day wasn’t perfect and there were things in hindsight I wish didn’t happen or we could’ve changed, they in no way took away from the amount of happiness we felt on our wedding day. This may sound odd, but when I look at our pictures, I feel a little sad wishing we could go back and do it all over again.

On the other hand, I am so happy to have these pictures as I am able to relive each moment and even some of those that I may have missed.

My favorite recap posts are ALWAYS the details posts. I love seeing the hard work of planning come to fruition in the little details that not all wedding guests may notice, but truly make the entire wedding picture complete.

Ceremony decor

Admittedly, the details of our wedding were a labor of love by our wonderful friends and family with a little help from me. We have amazing people in our life who volunteered to help us throughout wedding planning, which not only saved us money, but also helped turn my vision into reality. We could not have had the wedding we did without their help, so for that I am extremely grateful.

After having a bit of a restless night, I woke up on W.M. (Wedding Morning) well before my alarm. I spent some time alone in prayer, took a long shower, and blow dried my hair at a leisurely pace. It felt lovely to not be rushed.

My shoes—and sixpence—were also ready to do this thing.*

A little before 9:00 AM, my mom arrived and we walked across the street to get pretty while my sister finished up with the bouquets. I had my hair done first, and Krista, my stylist, gave me the nicest compliment ever when she exclaimed, “What product did you use today?! It feels like a different head of hair!!” (The product in question is Living Proof’s Full, a thickening mousse that really does wonders. HIGHLY recommended.)

Long ago, we decided that my sister and I would make our own bouquets. Going through a florist is hella expensive, and with just two* of us, I figured we could handle it. I didn’t really care about flowers as long as they were white and pretty.

The final product of my long-suffering sister’s labor | Photo by RRG Wedding

Backtracking a little to Thursday, the morning of my bachelorette: my sister and I went out to get white flowers and greenery. (Side note: This is super cheap. We spent less than $50 for a ton of flowers.) We brought them home and arranged them into bouquets, taped them up, and put them (in water) in my bedroom, which always stays cooler than the rest of the apartment.